Appearance- The beer pours a deep brownish color with a massive foamy cream colored head. The head has a fantastic level of retention, very slowly fading over time to leave a great showing of a foamy lace on the sides of the glass.

Smell – The aroma is big of a dark fruit nature with raisin, plum, and fig. These dark fruits are mixed with molasses as well as a burnt candied sugar aromas. Along with all these smells comes other aromas of yeast cake, which brings with it some spice of clove and coriander. The alcohol is not hidden in this nose with a nice rum aroma present which when mixed with the rest of the smells gives a rather rich and warming smell overall.

Taste – The taste begins with a rather rich dark fruit flavor or raisin and plum mixed with the sugary molasses and caramel tastes that were in the nose. There is a rather decent bit of a breadiness that is present right from the start as well, with other flavors of yeast and spice of coriander soon following. The sugary flavors start losing ground as the taste advances however with them being replaced by some more roasty bread and some boozy flavors or a rum like nature. All the while a little bit of a woody taste and some flavors of chocolate develop on the tongue. With the mix of flavors that are left at the end, an almost spiced and roasty fruit cake like flavor is left on the tongue.

Mouthfeel – The body of the beer is rather thin for an 11% abv quad with a carbonation level that was average. A little thicker of a body may have suited the fruitcake like flavors of the brew slightly better and keep it a slightly slower sipper (as it should be an 11%).

Overall – This is a very tasty quad I must say. Other than the somewhat weak feel, it was really a fantastic beer to sip away. While not my favorite quad out there, I say definitely give it a try if you get a chance, as it is very good.

Really enjoyed this beer. It tastes absolutely amazing, but need to try it again for a more accurate review. It has kind of a winey feel to it which I could see some people not liking. This is definitely a top pick of mine from now on for Belgium brews.

This beer is really beautiful, of a dark brown color a big and persistent yellowish foam.
Smell and taste are mild, sweet, malty and a bit yeasty.. delicious. The highligths go to the vanilla notes.
Feel is also indredible. Body, carbonation and bitterness at high level and well balanced.
Maybe I'll give this beer the prize of beer of the year =)
And I had it in Belgium!

L: lovely, deep-dark, crimson red liquid, clear, with a loose, smog-stain light brown head that does not stay around long... the head does pour tall and actually some chunky lace here and there

S: cherry cough drop with maybe a hint of mocha... raspberry jam?... the alcohol is present, though more of its essence, coming over top the over aromas... mild red vinous (raisin) notes... flowers, sugar, booze

T: up front, a light-medium acidic sizzle that hangs on the palate long after each sip... definitely get the character of the conditioning yeast, hint of funk... nice little pop of sweet-fruity booze and a hint of coffee in the finish... undeniable malt and melanoidin-rich backbone with a slight but notable dark roast overtone... chocolaty burps

O: tell ya what - this is good, but there are more complex and interesting quads around (La Trappe, Abt 12, and on occasion Roche 10)... the flavors are a little "darker" than in what I would consider a quintessential quad... I've got the Heritage oak-aged version waiting in the wings - looking forward to that... anticipating an even-smoother, "better" model of this already nice beer

First beer of 34 bottles I ordered and had shipped out to me in the wilds of Northeast Thailand. Perhaps I was a bit paranoid about the beer being spoiled as its been over 100 degrees everday lately and the order took three days to arrive, and bottles were warm on arrival. All that made me half imagine I was drinking beer on the way to spoilage. However, the other beers I have since tried dispelled that, some of them very well known to me and if anything all tasted fresher than those from supermarkets in Bangkok. So, I assume the Hendrik Quad was as intended.

As an overall impression, this quad has some really interesting flavors going on. I know this might sound weird, but confirmed numerous times a gin and tonic back drop to more familiar quad flavors. One thing that I found interesting with this quad was how totally variable each sip I took was. Sometimes I got a gin tonic, other times Christmass pudding, other times chocolate/coffee. I really like my quads, one of my favorite beer styles, but I am still a bit of a rookie and thought Hendrik Staffe is one of the more unusual if not pretty good ones I've had.

On tap at the Yard House in Atlanta.
Deep, dark mahogany body with a good head.
Excellent flavor and aroma, but the aroma is too weak. (then again, the ale is too cold and this may improve with warming). Smooth body despite the high ABV. Medium-full. Rich, moderately complex flavor. Sweet but not cloying. Adequate dark fruit notes with suggestions of light spicing.